By Friday morning, they had arrived in Ohio. Calaway had forgotten how cold the winters could be in the East Coast. It had started to snow as he drove.
"Mark?" Lisa said.
"Yeah?"
"There's this ice cream place in Youngstown called Handel's," said Lisa. "It would mean so much to me if you took me there."
"Though he thought it was too cold for ice cream, Calaway obliged.
Handel's was a small hut with a blue and white awning. But Calaway could see why Lisa wanted to go. He was betting that Lisa came here often as a kid.
When they got there, there was a withered white haired man who saw Lisa and a jolt of recognition showed on his face.
"Lisa, it's been a long time," he said. "Where have you been, sweetheart?"
"In Nevada," Lisa said. "It's good to see you, Art, how's Miriam?"
"Good, good," said Art. He saw Calaway and said, who is this here?"
"This is my friend, Mark," said Lisa. "He's in the Army and he's going to be looking after me for a bit."
"I see," Art said. "Nice to meet you, son. It's good to have guys like you serving their country."
"Thank you, sir," said Calaway.
"So will it be the usual for you, my dear?" Art asked.
"You got it," said Lisa. "Calaway, would you like something as well?"
"Sure," Calaway said. "I'll take cherry vanilla."
After they got their ice cream, Calaway and Lisa went to the park where Lisa and Calaway sat on the swing.
"This is some damn good ice cream," Calaway said. "I never tasted anything so good."
"It's handmade," Lisa said, smiling. "I knew you'd like it."
"You used to come here often?" Calaway asked.
"Everyday," Lisa said. "Daddy would come pick me up from school and we'd come here. We used to be so close. Then he started dealing drugs and all that mess and stopped doing things with me. That's why Mom left him. She didn't want nothing to do with his lifestyle. And he didn't have time for us."
Lisa sighed.
"Why do things have to be that way?" She asked. "Why can't things just stay the same forever?"
"Life doesn't quite work that way, Lisa," Calaway said. "Things change. The world changes. It's up to us to decide whether we want to roll with the punches or not. And it's best not to think in the past. You'll be miserable for the rest of your life. Best just to move forward."
They sat in silence, finishing their ice cream.
"Mark?" Lisa said.
"Yeah, darlin'?" Calaway asked.
"Can you make me feel like a little girl again just one last time?"
Calaway smiled and said, "Sure, darlin' I can do that."
Calaway stood up and pushed her. Lisa giggled as she went higher and higher. Calaway was enjoying it too. He loved the pure joy on her face as he pusher her again and again.
"Ok, that's enough," Lisa said. "I'm ready to see Mom. Sorta."
"Why sorta?" Calaway asked as they walked to the Wildcat.
"I don't know how she'll react to me showing up on her doorstep," Lisa said, "Daddy didn't tell her I was coming."
"What?" Calaway said, outraged. "She's not expecting us?"
"No," Lisa said. "I know it's very irresponsible of him."
"I'm sure your mom will be more than glad to see you," Calaway said.
"I hope so," Lisa said.
Calaway drove into the parking lot of a moderate sized ranch style home. He turned off the Wildcat and said to Lisa, "Ready?"
Lisa nodded.
The both of them got out of the Wildcat and headed toward the door, which was made of oak. Lisa rung the doorbell. A few moments later, a women answered the door. She was a very nice looking woman who Lisa strongly resembled. From the eye color to the way their face was shaped. She was tall and had her hair curled and had long red nails.
"Lisa!" she exclaimed. "What a surprise this is."
She grabbed Lisa and hugged her tight.
"How long are you in town for?" she asked.
"I'm not visiting," Lisa said, "I'm staying."
"What do you mean, honey?" Lisa's mom asked.
Lisa pulled a letter from her jacket and handed it to her mother. The further she read, the angrier her expression became.
"Why that irresponsible, insensitive bum!" she said. "He loves what he does so much, he doesn't want to be bothered with his own daughter?!"
She finally noticed Calaway and said, "Who is this? One of your father's goons?"
"This is Mark Calaway," Lisa said. "And he's different from Daddy's usual goons. He's in the Army, he's smart, and he's a good man. He's going to be looking after me for a while."
Lisa turned to Calaway and said. "Mark this is my mom, Diane. As you can see, she's nice on the eyes, and she's single."
"Lisa!" Diane exclaimed. Then she turned to Calaway and said, "Now you listen here, Mark or whoever you are, I don't need help in raising my own child, so you can drive back to whereever you came from."
"Mom!" Lisa exclaimed. "Please talk to him. And let us in, it's pretty cold out here."
Diane let them in. Lisa lead Calaway to the living room. It was a nice humble living room that was painted forest green with a fireplace and a sectioned sofa. There were numerous pictures of Diane and Lisa when Lisa was a baby.
"I'm going to settle in my room," Lisa muttered. She gathered her belongings and went upstairs.
"Would you like something to drink?" Diane asked.
"Sure," Calaway said.
Diane disappeared into the kitchen. A few moments later, she came back with a can of Crystal Pepsi and a glass. Calaway thanked her as he sat down.
"Listen, Mr. Calaway, I'm sorry I got nasty with you earlier," she said. "I'm so angry that Nick doesn't want nothing to do with his own daughter and dumps her on you, it's not fair to you. You don't have to look after her or take care of her."
"But I want to," Calaway said. "I'll admit, first it was for the money Nick put in in for me. But I got to know your daughter. She's a great kid who deserves someone who's going to be there for her. I know you want to do it on your own, but it's hard being a single parent. Trust me, I know. My father died in 'Nam when I was a little boy. It was a struggle for my mother raising five boys on her own. And for all it's worth, I think Nick is a loser for caring more about his lively hood more than his child. I will step in and take care of Lisa with you."
"You'll do that?" Diane asked.
Calaway nodded.
"Lisa was right," she said. "You are a good man. Not many men are willing to take care of someone else's child. How did a guy like you end up working for Nick?"
"I was homeless and desperate," said Calaway. "Didn't want to do it, but it paid well. Listen, I'll be back in the morning, I'm going to look for a place to stay."
"No need to do that," Diane said. You can stay here. The basement has a nice comfortable bed down there. And if I get to know you better and you win my heart, you'll work your way to my bed."
Calaway smiled. Diane smiled back.
"That works," he said. "Would you like to go out for dinner tonight?"
"Sure," Diane said. "There's a nice Portuguese restaurant in Cleveland that I've been dying to go to."
"Okay, we'll go," Calaway said. "But I don't have a suit. I'll have to go into town to get a few."
"Sure," Diane said. "You go do that."
Calaway walked back to the Wildcat. He then remembered something. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Nick's number. The phone rang for a few minutes before Nick answered.
"Hey, you're alright." Nick said. "I called Lisa's phone, but got no answer, I was starting to worry."
"Nope, everything was fine," said Calaway, which wasn't true. He wasn't going to tell Nick about the robbery and how one of them had held a gun to Lisa's head. Nor was he going to tell Nick about how he smashed Lisa's phone in a fit of anger. "Lisa lost her phone while we were going up 66.
"That girl loses everything," Nick said, sounding annoyed. "That phone cost a heap of money."
"Listen, Nick," Calaway started, "your ex-wife. She off limits?"
"If you're asking me if I still have feelings for that broad, I don't," Nick said. "I don't care who or what she goes out with, it's her life. Do what you want with her."
That was all the confirmation Calaway needed.
"Well, just thought you oughta know that Lisa is fine, not a hair on her head out of place," Calaway said. "Enjoy your life, Nick."
He hung up and drove out of the parking lot to find a tailor shop.